Source (Aramaic) | Translation (English) |
---|---|
יִתְגַּדַּל וְיִתְקַדַּשׁ שְׁמֵהּ רַבָּא. בְּעָלְמָא דִּי בְרָא כִרְעוּתֵהּ וְיַמְלִיךְ מַלְכוּתֵהּ, (וְיַצְמַח פֻּרְקָנֵהּ וִיקָרֵב מְשִׁיחֵהּ.) בְּחַיֵּיכוֺן וּבְיוֹמֵיכוֹן וּבְחַיֵּי דְכָל בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל, בַּעֲגָלָא וּבִזְמַן קָרִיב. וְאִמְרוּ אָמֵן׃ |
I pray –
that the power residing in God’s Great Name be increased and made sacred, in this world which God created freely in order to preside in it, (and increase its freeing power and bring about the messianic era.) May this happen during your lifetime our lifetimes, and those of all the house of Israel. Make this happen soon, without delay. We express our agreement and hope by saying *AMEN* |
יְהֵא
שְׁמֵהּ רַבָּא מְבָרַךְ לְעָלַם וּלְעָלְמֵי עָלְמַיָּא: |
“May that immense power
residing in God’s great name flow freely into our world and worlds beyond.” |
יִתְבָּרַךְ,
וְיִשְׁתַּבַּח, וְיִתְפָּאֵר, וְיִתְרוֹמֵם, וְיִתְנַשּׂא, וְיִתְהַדָּר, וְיִתְעַלֶּה, וְיִתְהַלָּל, שְׁמֵהּ דְקֻדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא. לְעֵלָּא מִן כָּל בִּרְכָתָא וְשִׁירָתָא, תֻּשְׁבְּחָתָא וְנֶחֱמָתָא, דַּאֲמִירָן בְּעָלְמָא, וְאִמְרוּ אָמֵן׃ |
May that Great Name,
that sacred energy, be shaped and make effective and be acknowledged and be given the right honor and be seen as beautiful and elevating and bring jubilation. Way beyond our input of worshipful song and praise, which we express in this world, As we confirm our agreement and hope by saying *AMEN*. |
יְהֵא שְׁלָמָה
רַבָּא מִן שְׁמַיָּא וְחַיִּים טוֹבִים וְעַל כָּל יִשְֹרָאֵל, וְאִמְרוּ אָמֵן׃ |
May that endless peace
that heaven can release for us bring about the good life for us and for all Israel As we express our agreement and hope by saying: *AMEN*. |
עוֹשֶׂה שָׁלוֹם
בִּמְרוֹמָיו הוּא יַעֲשֶׂה בְּרַחֲמָיו שָׁלוֹם עָלֵינוּ וְעַל כָּל יִשְׂרָאֵל וְעַל כָּל יוֺשְׁבֵי תֵבֶל |
You, who harmonize it all
on the highest planes – bring harmony and peace to us, to all Israel and all sentient beings |
וְאִמְרוּ
אָמֵן׃ |
As we express our agreement and hope by saying: *AMEN* |

“קדיש יתום | Mourner’s Ḳaddish, interpretive translation by Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi” is shared by the living contributor(s) with a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International copyleft license.
At her website, writer Sarah McCulloch adds her own adaptation of the Kaddish inspired from Reb Zalman’s Kaddish:
Mourners Kaddish: A Creative Translation
by Rabbi David Zaslow
Highest and Holiest is the incredible Name of God’s Unity. Amen.
The Unity of body, heart, mind, and soul that exists in our world
and which is continually created and made available by Divine will.
May the awareness of God’s unity quickly become apparent
in our lifetime, and in our days,
and in the lifetime of all those who struggle with Reality.
May God’s great Name of Interdependence
be blessed forever: in all ways, in all days.
Blessed, praised, glorified, exalted, uplifted,
adorned, held high, and hailed is the Name of the Holy One, Blessed Be.
The Holy One, the Only One, God, our God Who is at the same time
beyond all blessings, songs, prayers, and comforting words
which we can possibly speak in this dimension.
And let us say, Amen.
May there be an incredible sense of wholeness,
completion, peace, and life for us and for all those who wrestle with Reality.
And let us say, Amen.
Thank you so much for sharing your translation Rabbi Zaslow. We’ve posted it separately set side-by-side with the Aramaic sourcetext, here.
[…] Make this happen soon, without delay. We express our agreement and hope by saying *AMEN* … Full text here – Zalman Schachter-Shalomi Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Int’l license. […]
[…] an alternative translation that you can read below, taking inspiration from Reb Zalman’s alternative version. A copy of the sheet that I used with the transliteration, my translation and a traditional […]